The jury is in: You possibly can’t construct a fame for creating high-quality content material on social media with out having strong content material pillars in place.
And the rationale for that’s easy.
Individuals crave consistency.
Social media customers need to know what you’re going to speak about, if you’re going to speak about it, and how much worth they will anticipate to stroll away with.
Give it some thought.
When you’re a B2B hyperlink builder that follows website positioning professionals on LinkedIn, you’re most likely not following them in hopes of grabbing their grandmothers’ pie recipes. You’re possible following them for moral link-building concepts, website positioning greatest practices, and their subject-matter experience.
However, in the event that they talked about their household trip on Monday, shared a recipe on Tuesday, and posted a carousel with 5 website positioning tips about Wednesday, you may determine to hit the unfollow button.
Since you may’t depend upon them for constant, significant content material, you’d possible take your shopping habits elsewhere, proper?
That’s the concept.
With out clear content material themes in place, social media customers can’t depend upon you, belief you, or develop a significant relationship with you.
When you’re able to put collectively a content material pillar technique to focus your social media efforts, stick round to be taught extra.
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What Are Content material Pillars?
When you’ve by no means heard of content material pillars earlier than, digital advertising marketing consultant Shane Barker sums them up completely:
“Content material pillars usually are not merely matters in your posts; they’re the cornerstones of your social media technique. By specializing in a handful of core themes, you not solely construct authority in these areas but additionally give your model a constant voice. Identical to pillars help a constructing, content material pillars help your social media presence by offering a strong basis from which to develop and have interaction your viewers.”
See? We couldn’t have mentioned it higher ourselves.
When you’re prepared to make use of content material pillars in your social media technique, learn on to be taught 5 methods you may uncover matters which can be consistent with your viewers and the distinctive worth your online business gives.
1. Create Content material Pillars Based mostly on Your Viewers’s FAQs
Able to create related content material in your social media viewers? Testing question-based content material matters — suppose who/what/when/the place questions — may help you create useful content material property in your social media followers.
A easy strategy to uncover which questions to focus on is by wanting by way of your buyer help (CS) tickets, suggestions types, and e mail inquiries. Don’t hesitate to prioritize e mail safety and use the DKIM checker when sending e mail inquiries to guard delicate data and forestall unauthorized entry or interception of communications.
Then, take this a step additional by wanting on the “Individuals additionally ask” and “Associated searches” sections on Google’s search engine outcomes web page (SERP) for the principle keyphrases your online business targets. In these sections, you’ll see an inventory of ceaselessly requested questions (FAQs) associated to your goal key phrases.
As an illustration, let’s check out one of many high keyphrases the model Hers targets on Google, which is “the right way to get antidepressants”.
If we plug this into Google, we’ll see the next FAQs within the “Individuals additionally ask” part:
Hers may acquire the next questions from the “Associated searches” part:
After compiling an inventory of questions, search for patterns and repeated questions — the extra it’s requested, the extra vital it’s to your viewers. Proceed doing this till you will have an inventory of 5 to 10 important query matters you may take a look at as content material pillars. When you get a optimistic response, proceed testing comparable questions or conduct a deeper dive into every query to uncover sub-pillars.
2. Mimic the Content material Classes You Cowl on Your Weblog
Check the content material classes you cowl in your weblog.
As an illustration, in case you run a SaaS weblog, you may supply the next classes:
- Consumer-generated content material, resembling software program opinions, comparability guides, and explainer movies by B2B affiliate entrepreneurs and subject-matter specialists
- Academic content material, together with SaaS software program how-tos, app listicles, and assist middle posts
- Motivational content material, resembling inspirational SaaS model tales, case research, and firm wins
Check out your most beloved posts in these content material buckets (test their rating scores utilizing Ahrefs’ Rank Tracker) and jot down their matters. Then search for patterns and similarities amongst these matters and whittle them all the way down to an inventory of 5 to 10 choices to check.
3. Repurpose the Pillar Content material Items you Showcase on Your Weblog
There are a number of content material property you’re already utilizing as pillar items in your weblog.
These are those you broadcast loud and proud. They’re on the high of your weblog web page, you’ve labored arduous to get them to rank excessive, and also you promote them as a part of your wider content material advertising technique regularly.
Let’s check out Campus.edu’s weblog web page, for instance.
Campus.edu gives the next content material classes on its weblog: Enterprise, neighborhood school, college, monetary assist, press releases, and pupil life. It additionally has concrete pillar items in every class that it spends further advertising {dollars} on. The next monetary assist piece breaks down the method of making use of for a pell grant:
Not solely can Campus.edu repurpose snippets from this text into limitless social media posts, however it could additionally take a look at this subject as one in all its social media content material pillars. And you are able to do the identical!
So, head to your weblog and screenshot all your showstopping pillar items. Slim these matters all the way down to an inventory of 5 to 10 you may take a look at as content material pillars on social media.
4. Generate Pillar Subjects by Plugging Your Goal Key phrase Phrases Into an AI Writing Assistant
Right here’s a easy strategy to discover related matters in a pinch!
Whereas we don’t suggest utilizing an AI weblog author to put in writing a whole article or social media submit, we do recommend utilizing it as a part of your content material planning course of. With an AI writing assistant, like Simplified AI Weblog Author, you may plug within the keyphrases your online business targets and immediate it to generate social media matters for you.
When asking for concepts, be particular.
As an illustration, attempt:
“Please generate social media matters utilizing the offered key phrases: Profession constructing suggestions, profession success, transferable abilities, mid-level professionals, new graduates.”
Proceed asking the AI writing assistant for subject concepts till you will have a strong checklist of 5 to 10 content material pillars you may take a look at.
5. Solidify Core Subjects Based mostly on Your Goal Viewers’s Ache Factors
Revisit your target market’s high ache factors and the way your services or products can resolve them higher than the competitors.
Use these insights to brainstorm matters consistent with your viewers’s core wants.
As an illustration, in case you promote productiveness software program to startups and solopreneurs, your viewers may need the next ache factors:
- An excessive amount of to do and never sufficient time to do it in
- Feeling misplaced in unorganized workflows
- Engaged on too many repetitive, mundane duties
- A scarcity of a high-level activity overview is resulting in silos and careless errors
- Poor group collaboration choices
On this case, you may take a look at content material pillars like:
- Productiveness suggestions that save manufacturers 10+ hours every week
- How one can create pristine productiveness workflows
- How one can automate repetitive duties
- How one can take away data silos and keep conscious of your activity overview always
- High group communication and collaboration instruments, suggestions, and concepts
Once more, get your checklist down to 5 to 10 concepts you may take a look at.
And that brings us to …
6. Check and Finalize Your Pillar Subjects
Check the entire strategies above earlier than finalizing your social media content material pillars.
Then solidify your content material sorts (i.e., Instagram Reels, LinkedIn Carousels, YouTube explainer movies, and so forth.) and select your posting technique.
As an illustration, you may submit academic content material about lead scoring on Mondays, motivational content material about profitable gross sales manufacturers on Wednesdays, and behind-the-scenes content material about gross sales pitching on Thursdays.
As soon as the content material planning course of is full, add your content material themes, content material sorts, and core matters to your social media content material calendar.
From there you’ll have to plan who’s going to provide the content material and who’s answerable for monitoring your social media content material technique.
Wrap Up
And that’s content material pillars for you in a nutshell!
Now it’s your flip. Observe the ideas we shared immediately to generate content material pillar concepts. Then, take a look at your concepts earlier than finalizing your core matters.
Lastly, keep organized by including your pillar matters to your content material calendar and assigning roles and obligations to applicable group members.
And that’s it. Right here’s to your success!
PS: In search of an entire advertising answer? With Rock Content material’s services and products, you may flip your most formidable content material objectives right into a actuality. Communicate with an knowledgeable to be taught extra, immediately.
Ian David (Visitor Writer)
Ian David began his profession in brick-and-mortar retail administration, which shortly included eCommerce and digital advertising as properly. He’s an avid reader and a self-taught knowledgeable in website positioning and content material advertising. He writes for a number of publications on quite a lot of digital advertising matters. Lately, his focus has been on utilizing influencer and internet affiliate marketing to drive extra conversions.